Changing Misconceptions in Bad Neuenahr
Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany
When I lived in Germany, I had an impression of northern Germany as too industrialized, focused on work while lacking an Old World charm I had come to expect in Germany. What I had forgotten or failed to realize was the resolve of the German people to hold onto and value their culture, in spite of the pressures of industrialization.
That all changed in 2015, when a friend invited me to visit a small town near Bonn in northern Germany, named Bad Neuenahr. My initial thought was that I would enjoy being with her and other friends that were going, but probably wouldn't find much in the town itself to interest me. How wrong I was!!
I should explain that what I love most, and seek out, when I travel is to get a sense of the sense of the people who live in the area and how they relax and go about their normal lives. Being surrounded by historical buildings and statues, outdoor cafe's and open spaces for walking is relaxing and stimulating at the same time.
Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is a joint town, formed when the towns (now districts) of Bad Neuenahr and Ahrweiler merged in 1969. Archaeological discoveries date the region back to the Hallstatt culture (8th to 6th centuries BC), with Ahrweiler being mentioned as early as 893 AD. The region was conquered by the Romans under Julius Caesar about 50 BC.
After checking into my hotel, Hotel Weyer, I headed for the central part of the town where, on my arrival in Bad Neuenahr I had spotted a pedestrian zone and a bakery or two for some coffee after a long hard day of travel.
The Platz an der Linde a a pedestrian zone with small cafe's, bakeries and stores lining a cobblestone central area, which hosts a farmer's market during the week. In the Platz and der Linde, is the Café Schokoladenträume; a combination of retail store, café and bistro, specializing in international chocolate specialties, various cocoa varieties as well as freshly roasted coffees. (update: 2/20/18. It's my understanding that the Café has now closed)
Kamps Bakery became my go to spot for sitting and watching the people in the square, who were relaxing and while providing a sense that the local community wasn't all work and no play - at odds with what I thought of in this part of Germany.
It wasn't long after I arrived that I found several walking paths along the Ahr River, which runs through the middle of town. I've always loved to walk; when I lived in Germany many years back, it was one of my passions. I immediately set out to explore the path, and to explore the fall colors that were evident everywhere.
The weather was quite pleasant and there were benches along the path, where I often stopped, looked and listed to the town life around me. The path was full of children riding their bicycles to schools, mothers with the babies in strollers, people walking their pets, and to occasional senior citizen savoring the day.
Bad Neuenahr became a central point for side trips to it's sister town of Ahrweiler, to Koblenz, Bonn and Cologne. In each of these towns, I further found that the identity of the country was intact, that people enjoyed the walking paths and cafe's as they did in southern Germany, with which I was familiar with. All my misconceptions were shattered, and I know I must return again.
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